J. Nathan Matias 🦣
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natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
J. Nathan Matias 🦣
@natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
130 followers 3 following 320 posts
Social & computer scientist who works alongside communities on science for a safer, fairer, more understanding Internet.

Founder, Citizens and Technology Lab · […]

[bridged from https://social.coop/@natematias on the fediverse by https://fed.brid.gy/ ]
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natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
In 2023, scientists estimate that 5.4k acute deaths and over 64k chronic deaths in North America were caused by wildfire smoke. Millions now face a question I ask every day: when is it safe to go outside?

AI forecasts might help, but is it safe to use them? […]

[Original post on social.coop]
Smoke and fog trapped east of in Ithaca New York during a temperature inversion in October 2021 Smoke and fog trapped east of Ithaca New York during a temperature inversion in August 2022
November 25, 2025 at 1:24 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
As someone with a respiratory disability with a partner who has a severe scent sensitivity, I have found it helpful to imagine our home with the analogy of a spaceship.

The first line of defense in our home is this “airlock” where we seal away anything scented […]

[Original post on social.coop]
A white cabinet with sealed translucent doors and wooden handles sits atop a laundry machine.
November 10, 2025 at 3:29 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Thanks Harriet for your legacy.

#outdoormoments
Blue skies with wisps of clouds and a bright sun Bronze statue of Harriet Tubman Baby cows in a field with a red barn in the background
November 2, 2025 at 12:22 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Grateful for the chance to ponder safety questions from the relative security of an autumn evening in central New York countryside.
A copse of trees shelters farm equipment on a blue sunset sky The setting sun reflects in gold off a farm pond under a blue sky The sun sets over golden grain at sunset A solitary cow looks at the creek lined with trees against a green hill and sunset view
October 19, 2025 at 12:19 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Are you a scientist, journalist, or civil society researcher studying New York State's distraction-free school policy, the one that bans internet-enabled devices in schools from bell to bell?

If so, I want to hear from you, as I refine a project to archive & classify published school policies.
A child holds a cellphone next to notepads and a purse. Photo by Katerina Holmes.
October 4, 2025 at 9:52 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Rode today from Nebraska City to Omaha, to catch up with @ethanz for lunch. Crossing the Missouri at sunrise & traveling gravel farm roads was magical.

I also visited the grave of Amelia Bloomer, 19th century designer & activist. Bloomer realized that the work […]

[Original post on social.coop]
Mist rises from the road at sunrise along the Iowa bluffs that line the Missouri River basin Sunrise over the Missouri River, with a splash of pink lining a band of gray clouds
October 1, 2025 at 11:31 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
> My soul into the boughs does glide;
> There like a bird it sits and sings,
> Then whets, and combs its silver wings;
> And, till prepar’d for longer flight,
> Waves in its plumes the various light.

-- Andrew Marvell, from "The Garden"

#outdoormoments
A white house with a slanted metal roof sits underneath a blue sky with rays of sunlight spreading across the clouds A row of elevators in a gravel quarry slant at diagonals, carrying the stone up from the deep chasm into hoppers for crushing and transportation. A telephone pole stands out against a span of white, and dark grey clouds and a deep blue sky, above a field of bright yellow goldenrod. Two hills converge in the distance beneath a gray and amber sunset, with a row of red and russet trees separating the horizon from a field of harvest corn.
September 25, 2025 at 1:32 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Had a conversation today with @pluralistic onstage about hacking tractors then ran into this beauty in progress on my ride home
September 18, 2025 at 11:06 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
As a friend said to me today, “the earth is so generous!”
Garlic hanging from the porch of a wooden house, with vine leaves on the pillars of the porch.
September 17, 2025 at 11:36 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
“The mind, that ocean where each kind
Does straight its own resemblance find,
Yet it creates, transcending these,
Far other worlds, and other seas;
Annihilating all that’s made
To a green thought in a green shade.”

—Andrew Marvell

#outdoormoments
Ears of sweet corn at a roadside stand Trees beyond a yellow field Layers of hills beyond the trees Goldenrod on a grassy hill
September 15, 2025 at 6:06 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Grateful for moments of grace this week

#outdoormoments
Sheep and goats on the field with a sunset behind Harvesting kale sprouts A bird flies on a lego wall Bricks beneath the road
September 12, 2025 at 1:46 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
I think I have finally arrived at cycling spd shoes that I can wear on long gravel / touring rides to a meeting and still have something that matches my business casual uniform for tech oriented professional settings.

I used to have some great black Chrome […]

[Original post on social.coop]
Two shoes shown from above against a concrete floor, with one sho adorned with a red button and the other with a blue one.
September 1, 2025 at 2:58 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Making a list and deciding which urgent scientific questions I will set aside in my work to defend/support academic freedom & civil liberties over the next few years.
A road takes a sharp turn downhill toward Seneca Lake in the New York Fingerlakes, surrounded by green trees, with another tree-covered hill rising up from the other side of the lake.
August 31, 2025 at 2:17 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
I'm grateful to the hundreds of hobbyists & open hardware devs who worked together to save countless chargers from the landfill.

This summer, my neighbors & I replaced the boards of our 40 chargers with OpenEVSE hardware, and we're no longer at the same level of […]

[Original post on social.coop]
A group of people stand around a table, replacing hardware from electric vehicle chargers under the wooden roof of a carport, with trees in the background. Hands hold a box and unscrew electronics board from a rectangular box that holds the internal components of an electric vehicle charger. A carport with a car charging cable stands behind the yellow and green leaves of a birch tree.
August 24, 2025 at 3:19 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Grateful to have made it outside a few times last week before air pollution rose again.

Today it’s back indoors while I finish reading Michelle Murphy’s fascinating book Sick Building Syndrome and the Problem of Uncertainty.

#outdoormoments […]

[Original post on social.coop]
A blue pond lined with green grass and trees under a blue sky A cyclist selfie in front of a paved path and green trees Green trees line a gravel path at sunset
August 17, 2025 at 10:05 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
In case you're wondering what our lab space looks like...

The daughter of CAT Lab's scientific consultant @elplatt, who asked to go by "Meowzers," sent us this amazing photo of what she imagines we're all doing when he's at team meetings. 😻😻
A white/yellow and orange cat work on bubbling chemistry sets and a laptop with the periodic table displayed, on a purple disco floor.
August 12, 2025 at 8:38 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
I finished my Everesting Roam 11:17am this morning for a total time of 33hrs 7m, w/ 33,414 ft of elevation.

Why do it? Journalism & global connection matter & are worth the effort. There's still time to donate to @globalvoices - I'll write more soon, now for a […]

[Original post on social.coop]
A person leans back, exhausted against a stairway.
August 4, 2025 at 12:49 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
With 28000 ft climbed, I have 5 hours 30 minutes to climb 5000ft, as I complete my <36 hr Everest roam fundraising challenge indoors away from wildfire smoke. Grateful to the @globalvoices community for sending me a workout playlist for my final leg!

Really […]

[Original post on social.coop]
August 3, 2025 at 12:40 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Made it to the 2/3 point in my Everesting attempt by 7:30pm. Everything was going well! Unfortunately NY State issued an air pollution health advisory starting midnight.

With air pollution at levels that send me to the ER, I pushed home to get indoors in time. I […]

[Original post on social.coop]
August 3, 2025 at 2:04 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Nearly at the half way point of my Everesting roam attempt, as a fundraiser for @globalvoices. It has been an extraordinarily beautiful day!

If you care about journalism and cross border understanding, consider donating- thanks! […]

[Original post on social.coop]
August 2, 2025 at 5:57 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Equipment check for my Everesting Roam attempt. Temperatures will drop into the 50s, so I am thinking about wearing my wool jersey rather than the mesh I wear for summer climbs.

Since I'm riding self supported for 36hrs, I have much to carry! That includes:
- […]

[Original post on social.coop]
Picture of a table with many items on it for a bicycle tour.
July 31, 2025 at 4:46 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Amidst rainstorms in the Finger Lakes, I now have a start time for my Everesting Roam Attempt. If all goes well, I will ride 32k+ feet in elevation over 36hrs in support of journalism and global understanding.

Learn more & donate here […]

[Original post on social.coop]
A rear bicycle wheel, with trees in the background A bicycle computer estimates a 34 hour ride capacity.
July 31, 2025 at 3:04 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
In case anyone is wondering, yes, I *will* be riding unisex bicycle tubes on my attempt this weekend to ride my bicycle up the equivalent of Everest.

Uh, thanks for clarifying, Amazon?

#bikenite
Screenshot showing an online marketplace entry entitled "Turbolito Unisex's BMX Inner Tube, Orange" and showing a photo of a bicycle inner tube.
July 30, 2025 at 10:04 PM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
Today’s goal: ride at least 15000 feet in virtual elevation, hopefully more than 20k as I listen to @globalvoices Executive Director @older’s novella “the Mimicking of Known Successes.”
The mimicking of known successes by Malka older- screenshot of audiobook at Libro.fm
July 26, 2025 at 11:36 AM
natematias.social.coop.ap.brid.gy
“Come close to Nature. Then, as if no one had ever tried before, try to say what you see and feel and love and lose.” -Rilke

With wildfire smoke drifting into the US northeast, it’s a day to stay away from nature as I train for next week’s Everest Roam attempt […]

[Original post on social.coop]
Orange and red dots on a map denoting wildfire smoke drift from Canada into the US Northeast An indoor bicycle trainer next to a window displays the route up Mt Ventoux Five water bottles and a Nutella burrito in front of a window A red bicycle on a stationary trainer in front of a tablet on a stand, with stairs in the background
July 26, 2025 at 11:26 AM